The Toronto Raptors will be visiting the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday night, with both teams eager for a victory. The Raptors have been struggling, especially on the road, where they are 0-10 and have lost nine of their past 11 games. The Pelicans are also in a tough spot, having lost five consecutive games and 11 of their last 12.
Both teams have come close to winning recently but have faltered at the last moment. The Raptors had an eight-point lead going into the fourth quarter against the Detroit Pistons but ended up losing 102-100 on Monday night. Similarly, the Pelicans lost their last two games by four points each, including a 114-110 defeat to the Indiana Pacers on Monday.
Toronto attempted 28 more shots than Detroit (104-76) but only managed to make 39.4 percent of them. Three of the Raptors’ last four losses have been by four points or fewer, with the defeat to the Pistons coming from a buzzer-beater by Jaden Ivey.
Currently, the Raptors are the only NBA team without a road win this season, tying their franchise record for most consecutive road losses at the start of a season, matching their 1997-98 team.
However, they will face a Pelicans team that is just as desperate for a win.
On a brighter note, New Orleans recently saw a strong performance from newly signed point guard Elfrid Payton, who recorded a career-high 21 assists against the Pacers, the most by any NBA player this season.
Despite facing numerous injuries, the Pelicans had guard CJ McCollum return to play on Monday night, scoring 23 points after a slow start in his first game since October 29.
Looking ahead to Wednesday, the Pelicans are hopeful that starting guard Dejounte Murray will return to action for the first time since fracturing his left hand in the season opener.
